Tampa, Florida
Part 5

It was about 10:30 when Greg, Mark and I finished doing the dishes. Mark had insisted on helping despite my mom’s protestations. “I’m used to doing it at home,” he explained, “as well as at sea. Besides, it’s my way of thanking you for your hospitality.”

“Candy. Isn't that your girlfriend’s name? It’s a wonder she let you go! You’d make the ideal husband!”

“Hey! Settle down, Nancy!” he laughed. “Marriage? Whoa! Leave me outa that one. That’s the furthest thing from my mind right now. Maybe in… whatever… five, ten years. Anyway, Candy is totally cool. She actually encouraged me to take this trip, and to spend some time in Florida. “If you don’t go, you’ll always be wondering ‘what if’,” she said. She’s a very mature lady.”

“Have your got your green card organized?”

“Yep. All signed, sealed and delivered.”

I had to smile sometimes when we were all still sitting at the dining table. Every now and then I’d catch my mom gawking at Mark just like Cody had told me his mom used to when he was in Cape Town. Hell, we were all gawking. Even Greg. You had to wonder how a dude as awesome as Mark could spend so much time at sea, away from places where he could socialise and party. On the other hand, he’d told us about life in Johannesburg while he was building the yacht. He’d work long hours five days a week, pretty much from dawn ‘til dusk, then party on weekends. Being alone for long periods didn’t bother him, or so it seemed. He struck me as being a very independent person. Even his voice was deeper and more mature than most guys his age, and had a certain confidence and authority about it.

Anyway, I didn’t want him to return to the hotel just yet, so I invited him to swim in the pool. It was a hot night.

“Can I borrow a pair of shorts or something?”

“You’re gonna look a bit wussy with me and Greg skinny dipping.”

“Yeah, right. With your folks around?”

“They’re used to it,” I shrugged as I ditched my clothes on the lawn. “We do it all the time. Besides, Cody told me you used to skinny dip in his pool.”

“Not when his folks were around.”

“His folks aren’t my folks. You gonna be a wuss or what?” And with that I dove into the pool, closely followed by Greg.

Mark stood there for a while, alternating glances between my mom and Andy sitting at the patio table sipping coffee some distance away, and me and my bro splashing about in the water. Then I guessed he figured he had no choice, so he quickly undressed and was in the water before anyone could get a decent gawk at his furniture. Damn! I managed to get a quick peek, though, and it was obvious that Mark was no slouch in the schlong department. And he had an all-over tan, probably from sunbaking or whatever on the yacht.

“Is everyone in Florida like this?” he asked after surfacing and flicking the water from his black hair. “I mean, like being nude?”

“Not sure. But all my buds are, and my folks don’t worry about it. I guess they figure it’s just teen stuff. Fuck, man, we even go into the house naked.”

“Hey, Mark,” Greg added, “Don’t worry about it. I thought Daniel and his buds were crazy too when I first met them. Waaay over the top! So you’re not the only one. But I’ve chilled. It’s no biggie anymore.”

“You guys sound like Cody. He didn’t think the nudity thing was a biggie either. That guy was … well, lemme put it this way, he wasn’t cut out to be a friend of the faint-hearted.” Then he cracked up; probably being reminded of something he and Cody had done.

Getting Mark to join us and my folks at the patio table naked for coffee and liquer wasn’t so easy. He insisted on wrapping a towel around his narrow waist. My bro and I were naked, though. But my mom didn’t seem too disappointed. She was happy to gawk at Mark’s chest, which was chiseled like you wouldn’t believe. That dude could’ve won a medal for his bod. A stack of medals, in fact. It was honed to perfection without being too big. Total fucking god material.

Meantime, I had a major prob wishing my damn boner away. No way I wanted to give Mark the wrong idea – or even the right idea, heh – and have him change his mind about staying at our house while he was looking for permanent digs.

“Well,” he said as the night was wearing on, and checking his watch, “guess it’s time to call a taxi. I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality tonight. It’s nice to be among… hey, how about that! I was gonna say friends. Feels like it, though. Feels like the way it used to be when I’d visit Cody and his folks back in Cape Town. They treated me like a son, and that’s the way you’ve treated me tonight.” His comment melted all of us, to the point where we were all shrugging and saying it was no biggie and all that kinda lamo stuff.

I gave my bro one of those I-wanna-be-alone-with-Mark-for-a-minute looks, and followed the dude to his pile of clothes on the lawn. Mom had gone inside to phone the taxi company.

“I wish I could talk to you privately.”

“Now’s your chance,” he said as he began to dress, which gave me longer opportunity to check out his furniture. Woohoo!

“I had a major fight with my best friend today. That’s why my mom grounded me. I figured maybe you could… well, y’know, talk to him or something.”

“Hey, I don’t even know your best friend.”

“You met him this morning at the marina. Paul.”

“Seems like a cool guy.”

“He is, but he’s got this thing about me and Cody. Like he doesn’t understand why I can’t forget Cody, even after all this time. So I figured maybe you could explain to Paul why, ‘cause I figure you’re the same.”

“Same?”

“Yeah. Y’know, the way you still feel about Cody. You do, don’t you? I mean, there’s no way you could’ve forgotten him… not after what he told me in his emails.”

Mark was buttoning his shirt and looking kinda uncomfortable. “There’s no way I’ll ever forget Cody,” he said without making eye contact. Instead, he tucked his shirt into his jeans, then sat on the grass while he put his socks and sneakers on.

“Are you mad at me?”

“No.”

“You used to get mad at Cody when he quizzed you.”

“How much did he tell you about me?”

“He said you were the coolest.”

“And?”

And? What the fuck was I supposed to say? That I knew all about the fights, the sex … everything? My mind was racing, trying to figure how I’d answer his question without getting him mad. But I was too late. He’d finished tying his laces, and stood.

“I read your eulogy, Mark; the one you delivered at Cody’s memorial service. Steve sent it to me. So I know how close you were to the Codeman, and how much he meant to you.”

“Listen, Daniel, I’m sorry you and Paul had a fight, but it’s really none of my business. OK? Besides, Cody and I were always fighting, and things always worked out in the end. It’ll be the same with you and Paul. You’ll see. Hey, I gotta jet. Thanks again for a great night.”

Mark left me standing there, feeling so fucking frustrated and helpless. There was so much I wanted to tell him, but couldn’t. He was the only person who could really understand the way I felt about Cody; the only person who could explain it to Paul. He was maybe 30 feet away, saying goodbye to my folks and bro, when I heard myself yelling: “HE SAID I WAS STILL IN LOVE WITH A CORPSE!” And with that I broke down completely. By the time everyone had arrived at my side, I was lying in a pathetic heap on the grass, sobbing uncontrollably.

I could hear all the voices as Andy tried to get me to my feet. But I didn’t wanna stand. I wanted to stay motionless and curled up like a cringing grub that had just been prodded. “Everything will be alright Daniel.” “Don’t worry, Daniel.” “You’ll feel better in the morning, Daniel.” “We’ll phone Paul and sort things out.”

Then I began to apologize to Mark for spoiling his evening. I’d really fucked things up. Big time. There was no way he’d wanna share my room after seeing me like this. How fucking pathetic! I’d lost Cody, I’d lost Paul, and now I’d lost Mark. ‘No way things could get any worse,’ I thought to myself as I continued to sob.

The voices above me suddenly became less distinct. I could hear whispering. Before I knew it, I was airborne. I’d only just recognized Mark as the person who was holding me in his strong arms before I was flying through the air, headed for the pool. Seconds later, I was breaking through the surface of the water, gasping for air.

“You’re not in love with a corpse,” Mark insisted angrily as he stood on the timber decking, peering down at me. My mom, Andy and Greg were gathered in a semi-circle behind him, looking kinda bewildered. “You’re in love with a spirit, Daniel. A spirit! Corpses are dead, man. Spirits are alive. Cody’s spirit is alive. You hear what I’m saying?” Then he offered me his hand, and pulled me out of the water and onto the deck as if I weighed nothing. “You understand that?”

“I’m soooo sorry for behaving like a fucking idiot.”

“Join the club, Daniel. There’s not a person I know who hasn’t behaved like an idiot at one time or another, including me. If I hadn’t behaved like an idiot, Cody and I would never have met. You OK now?” His voice was softer now, and kinda soothing.

“Yeah. Thanks.”

“You wanna hug?”

“That’d be so cool.”

A moment later. “Now look at what you’ve done! You’ve wet my clothes!”

“Can you stay a little longer?”

“Sorry, bud. Taxi’s waiting. And I’ve gotta sail again in the morning. Hey, you wanna come along for the ride? I think I can organize room for an extra passenger – but you’ll have to pull your weight. You’re gonna have to work your passage. OK?”

“Serious?”

“Sure.” And there was that smile again. That magic smile that could make everything so right. “Be at the wharf at 6:30 in the morning. OK?”

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